Oscar Claude Monet, born in 1840 in Paris, France, began pursuing his love of art at a young age. He was very close with his mother, a trained singer, who supported her son’s artistic interest. His father wished for Monet to go into business, dismissing his dreams of an art career. In 1851, he enrolled into Le Harve secondary school of arts, and studied under artists such as Jacques-François Ochard (1800-1870) and Eugène Boudin (1824-1898), until his mother died and he left to live with his aunt. At this time Monet was selling sketches and caricatures and became well-known in the area for this.
Traveling to Paris, Monet attended the Academie Suisse, where he met Camille Pissarro (1830-1903). He would visit the Louvre, but instead of copying the old masters, he would sit himself by a window and paint what he saw. In 1861, Monet severed in the military, in Algeria, continuing his service for some time until he contracted typhoid fever. Returning to the art groups of Paris, he befriended famous artists such as Auguste Renoir (1841-1919), Frédéric Bazille (1841-1870), and Alfred Sisley (1839-1899). It is with this group, and other fellow artists, that Monet became a founder of Impressionism.
Many of Monet’s pieces were modeled by Camille Doncieux, who became his wife and mother of his children. They were married in 1870, with their first child born a few years earlier. They lived in poverty for quite some time, moving from place to place such as England and the Netherlands, returning to Paris for Monet’s art in 1859. With no help from his father, Monet became so depressed from their financial difficulties that he attempted to drown himself in the Seine River. His wife later died, and Monet completed his famous painting of her on her death bed. He would later remarry, to Alice Hoschedé in 1892.
Together with other impressionist artists, their first exhibition was held in 1874. The exhibition was received well, although the prices of many paintings were too high and as a result did not sell. Critics stated that their works were more like sketches than finished works of art. Monet later became much more financially stable with the help of his dealer, Paul Durand-Ruel (1831-1922). Enough so that he bought quite a large area of land. Even though Monet was rather isolated from the newer art movements of the time, his paintings continued to generate interest. For much of his later life, Monet focused on landscapes, painting his famous lily pond pieces.
Monet’s life was riddled with both mental and physical ailments. His eyesight deteriorated much in his later life and he also struggled with depression. On December 5, 1926, Monet died from lung cancer. While he viewed his paintings of nature to be his only achievement in life, he left behind a great legacy.
Above: Water Lilies, 1919 - Water Lilies, c. 1915-26 - The Water Lily Pond, c. 1917-19 by Claude Monet.
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